Path of a Hero
by Stormpath
Summary: True heroism is remarkably sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve others, at whatever cost.
1. Arrival

It was a beautiful day, the sky was almost crystal clear, only here and there a small white speck was breaking the monotony of the wild blue yonder. The air was warm but not unbearable thanks to the light breeze coming from the eastern mountains. Simply a perfect day to spend on any type of outdoor work, activities or a simple stroll. However, not everybody could enjoy it and for Jaune, waiting in a small section was getting more and more irritating. He had arrived at the airport few hours early due to the fact that his village was quite far away and the train only passed through it twice a day thus forcing him to take the one going quite early. But the ride was enjoyable and time went surprisingly fast but mostly because he had slept through more than half of the journey. After stepping off the train he had thought about walking around the city of Vale for a bit, but his hearth wasn't into it, so he directed himself towards the airport. And here he was now, waiting in a crowded place for hours, dying of boredom and listening the same news loop the entire day. Thankfully only half an hour more and his agony would end and the shuttles which are going to carry them to Beacon will arrive. And for the umpteenth time he opened a small brochure and read its contents. It was about Beacon, holding some basic information about the school, its founding, teachers and various programs. And the more he read, the more worried he became, on one side, it was his dream, his desire, his obligation and on the other, a mountain with no end in sight. It was like reaching for the stars and knowing you are never going to catch them but if nothing else, he was determined and he was going to conquer that mountain, one step at a time.

He was getting hungry so he decided to grab a bite before the shuttles arrived. He put the brochure back in his pack and pulled out a sandwich. While eating slowly, he looked around at the other people in the terminal, his future comrades, maybe his future friends. Some of them were idly chatting among each other while others were saying final goodbyes to their families. He had remembered his farewell, his brothers so hyped about him becoming a hunter, constantly talking about monster fighting. It was the most coolest thing ever, they had said. His mother was constantly packing stuff, every tidbit, it was her way of holding back tears and coping with the fact that her eldest was going so far away. And finally his father, acting much more cooler and telling him how proud he was and that no matter what, the only thing important was for Jaune to come home alive. With a sigh, Jaune finished his meal and just before he was starting to rummage through his backpack once more, a voice announced that boarding had begun. He stood up, lifted his pack and started walking towards the large, almost whale like, shuttle.

_'I wonder what this flying feels like?'_

* * *

_'Never again.'_ was Jaune's thought as he was weakly holding to a metal bin and emptying the contents of his stomach.

It was all fine at the start but twenty minutes into the flight and his body was starting to show the signs of protest. _'Looking out of the window was probably a bad idea.'_

Thankfully he had somehow stopped himself from puking all over the shuttle's floor so it wasn't a total disaster but it wasn't far from it. The first day had barely started and he had already made a nice first impression. Some of the people passing him snickered and he thought he had heard something mention Vomit Boy somewhere in all the voices. _'Oh great, is that going to stick now?'_

He had spent the next five minutes just calming his stomach down and breathing deeply while slowly admiring the scenery. It was a grand place, with a large open walkway leading to a castle like structure surrounded by beautifully decorated and vibrant gardens and white archways. Jaune simply stood taking in the sight, his home away from home, when an explosion interrupted him. By the time he had found the place of the accident, a white-haired girl was furiously marching away from the scene and wait, was that a tiara, crown thingy in her hair? After a second or two of curious pondering Jaune diverted his attention to the other girl who was now slumped down on the pathway. She had a short dark red/brown hair and wore a simple red and black dress, a bright red cloak with a hood and on her lower back was strapped a unusal metal object. She looked kinda down after the encounter. _'Better to check her out, see if she's okay and who knows, maybe i befriend someone today?'_

„Hey, need a hand?" She looked at his gloved hand, then at him before clasping his hand and pulling herself up.

„By the way, the name's Jaune."

„Ruby, Ruby Rose", she replied and then smiled mischievously. „Are you the guy who threw up on the ship?"

„Ahh...yea." Jaune slowly replied and pinched the bridge of his nose. _'Yep, it is definitely going to stick.'_

„So, I don't ¸know where we are supposed to go so what do you say about walking around a bit, explore the place before we get called in?" Jaune offered

„Okay, why not."

They started slowly trekking down the pathway just taking in the surrounding before Jaune continued. „And just so you know, motion sickness is a much more common problem than people realize."

„Look, I'm sorry, Vomit Boy was the first thing that crossed my mind." Ruby tried apologizing.

„It's okay", Jaune smirked „miss Crater Face."

„What?! Oh come on, that explosion was totally an accident."

„Fine, fine, we will pipe down on the nicknames then, before someone else hears them. So, the name is Jaune Arc, short, sweet, rolls of the tongue, ladies love it." He exclaimed triumphantly.

„Do they?" Ruby teased

„Yes! Umm, no? Maybe?" Jean answered rubbing the back of his neck.

She giggled, hearing him stumble with an answer. After a moment of silence Ruby, wanting to talk about weapons, took the object off her back which suddenly transformed into a giant scythe which she slammed into the pavement. „I've got this!" She exclaimed full of excitement.

„Whoa, is that... a Scythe?" _'Bloody hell, that thing is twice her size.'_

„And it is also a fully customizable high impact sniper rifle." Ruby boasted.

„Next thing you will say that you can fly with it?" Jaune asked jokingly.

„Yup."

„Ahmm, What? You are joking right?" Ruby shook her head.

„So you are not joking... right, never mind. However I've never seen anything like this and I must say, it looks quite impressive." _'And deadly'_ „Where did you get it?" Jean inquired.

„I made it!" Ruby beamed.

„You made it?" _'Did I hear that right?'_

„Oh, yea, every student at Signal academy forged his own weapons." She explained, giving the weapon a few spins.

_'What?!'_ Jean cringed inside _'This is sooo above me, I can't even forge an armpiece. Man, it truly is impressive but If every other student here is only nearly skilled and equiped as she is than I've gotten myself really deep'_

„So, what have you got?" Ruby interrupted Jean from his troubled thoughts.

„Oh, well, I've got this sword." He nervously pulled it from the sheath and strapped a small metal piece to his left arm. „And I've also got a shield." The piece snapped open into a large white kite shield with a coat of arms painted on it.

„Ouuu, what do they do." Ruby pressed on curiously.

„Oh, nothing much, the sword is my grand-grand-grand fathers, it is a hand me down and the shield, well... I can change its size, doesn't take much space so... I can easly clasp it on my belt."

Ruby looked thoughtful for a second. „The sword is more a family heirloom but I like it, not many people have an appreciation for the classics these days."

„Yea, the classics. Thank you Ruby." 'It _means more than you know.'_

„I wanna know why did you help me back there?" She enquired.

„Why not? You looked kinda down and alone and my mum always said, strangers are just people you haven't met yet."

„That is a really nice lookout. Should we get inside before anything important starts?"

„Oh yea, I almost forgot this is a school, lead the way." They started strolling towards the grand entrance.

„Preferably to the food court."

Ruby's only answer was a giggle.

* * *

Once they had entered the main hall, it was already filled with people and before Jaune had assessed the room properly and got his bearings, Ruby was already running into the crowd and yelling back to him. „There is my sister, got to go! Bye! "

„Wha, wait!" But he had already lost her in the crowd. „Great, who am I going to talk to now?" Jaune muttered to himself looking around the crowd for a few seconds, it felt like someone was watching him but he dismissed it and went near a white stone pillar. _'Good place as any'._

He leaned onto it and waited for the official proceedings to start. Soon two persons stepped up on the podium, one of them, a male, approached an antique microphone standing in the middle of the podium. He had a short gray hair, some quirky looking glasses in Jaune's opinion, a dark green suit with an accompanying, light green scarf. In his left hand was a cane and he was obviously favouring his other foot, probably an old injury.

„I'll keep this brief." started the man, getting the attention of everyone.

„You have traveled here in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills. And when you have finished you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look among you, and all I see is wasted energy in need of purpose, direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this but your time at this school will show that knowledge can carry you only so far. It is up to you to take the first step."

And with that he left the microphone to his companion, a blond haired woman who, Jaune thought, had a questionable taste in capes. „Gather up tonight. Tomorrow your initiation begins. Be ready. You are dismissed."

_'Well that was more ominous than informative, bloody nice.'_ Jaune thought to himself.

Since they all had arrived late in the afternoon it was already dark and everyone was directed to a large room where they all would be spending the night. Jaune had quickly found himself a spot near the middle of the room and set up his sleeping bag. He had already taken off most of his clothes and was ready to put on his pajamas when he noticed a problem. „Oh, this is going to be great..." he muttered under his breath.

_'Thank you mom, next time I'm doing the packing.'_ Jaune was not pleased with the pajamas he currently possessed and wondered why had his mother packed exactly these but he couldn't get angry about it, it was a minor thing and when he thought about it more he remembered they were quite cozy _'It definitely beats sleeping half-naked, don't want to freeze my ass off. And bunny slippers are awesome.'_

So he put on the pajamas and started strolling to the bathroom. Not a moment later, some muffled laugh and a few jabs accompanied him. _'Ah, right on queue.'_

He turned to the most vocal ones and started gesturing with his hands. „Oh yea, sure, laugh it up, but remember this is only a one time show for you folks, someone has to keep some of you nervous fellas from thinking too much about tomorrow." _'Confidence is the key, thanks dad'_

Some people had a few more witty remarks but Jaune didn't care, maybe he helped someone with his words, made them laugh, eased their minds, maybe not, but he was too tired to think anymore. After quickly brushing his teeth, Jaune returned to his spot and lied down. He continued to listen to conversations around him. There were still talks about tomorrow's initiation, some talked about home, friends or hobbies but he was slowly fazing out. _'Wait a minute! Did I hear someone say my PJs are cute? Nah, my mind is probably playing with me, too tired.'_

Minutes later, sleep had claimed his mind.

* * *

**And there you have it, the first chapter, nothing too eventful. The story will be following Jaune and thus will probably be more focused on team JNPR. The show skips several weeks after the teams are formed and I will be trying to fill in those gaps once I reach them and expand on the characters a bit so it will most likely be an AU from that point on. And Jaune is still going to be Jaune, he won't be turning into a badass in a matter of days/weeks or finding some secret super powers nobody knew about. He is still going to be that goofy, inexperienced but caring guy trying his best to become a hunter.**

**I'm just going to add that English is not my main language so grammatical errors are bound to happen but I will do my best to limit them.**

**Anyways, thanks for reading. Peace out.**


	2. A brush with death

Morning had arrived quickly and with it, the day of initiation. Jaune, having fallen asleep quite early was feeling well rested and ready to tackle the day. He slowly stood up and stretched himself. The moment his mind properly booted up he started hearing an endless stream of words coming from nearby. He turned to its source and the sight he saw amused him. A bubbly, orange haired girl was talking excitedly, barley taking a pause and was darting everywhere around her companion , while he was slowly packing his sleeping bag and responding with only yes, no and an occasional sigh. Although facing an onslaught of words, he looked like he didn't mind. '_He definitely doesn't look like a morning person'_, Jaune chuckled to himself and left the duo.

Jaune directed himself towards the bathroom and started his morning routine: brushing his teeth, then showering and finally trying to get his hair into a slightly less messy shape. Once he was satisfied with his look, he returned to his spot and changed his clothes, putting on his slightly worn down jeans and a black hoodie. The rest of the stuff he put in his backpack and exited the room.

There was a notice on the door for all the students. „Alrigt let's see, hmm" Jaune was mumbling to himself, „Grab breakfast, definitely. Visit the locker room after that, okay. And after that just wait for the initiation to start, sounds simple."

Once he got to the mess hall he tried to find Ruby, some company while eating was always nice but unfortunately he couldn't see her so he found himself an empty table near the entrance and started working on his cereal. His thought slowly turned towards today's initiation. Since it was an initiation, Jaune was sure there was going to be some kind of a test. _'Yep, definitely, a test, but probably nothing too hard, maybe some combat tests. Surely they weren't planning on going all out on us the first day? '_

He spent the next few minutes playing out various scenarios but every time he ended with a conclusion that they will not be facing anything too hard. 'The only thing that doesn't add up is all this talk about groups and partners.' Jaune continued to ponder for a few moments _'Maybe it will be a joint exercise? Bah, enough of this. I will see when it starts.' _He left for the locker room.

At the entrance was a quite hefty list of students and near each name the assigned locker's number and at the bottom a small instruction on how to set a custom password. „Hmm, Arc, Arc... okay here. Number 636."

Jaune entered the large room and almost immediately lost himself in the maze of metal lockers. Few minutes later he was still searching and was getting slowly irritated. „Oh this is ridiculous, row six hundred seventy again? Where the hell is it. It can't be that complicated." He rambled on, not caring about some wierd looks he was receiving.

„Ah finally, there you are." Jaune said with relief and dropped his backpack on the floor „Now just press this and this... enter password... enter again" and the locker opened.

The lockers were definitely large. _'Bet a person could fit in there with no problem.'_

_'Alright, let's get prepared. Sword is here... shield here... armor... back plate... wristguard, shoulder plate... another shoulder plate, chest plate... and the other wristguard, that's all then. Hmm, let's see, what else... oh yeah, gloves, aaaand... that 's it.'_

Jaune donned on his armor, put on his gloves and left the rest of his stuff in the locker which he then promptly closed. Now when he was fully prepared and with some time to spare, Jaune decided to mingle around, thinking about maybe asking someone about all this team stuff he was hearing about. _'Yeah, why not... aaaand, these two look strangely familiar'_

Few locker rows away, two girls were in a middle of conversation. The first one had a regal stance, with long withe hair falling down her right side and cold icy blue eyes. She wore a pale blue dress and slightly darker bolero jacket which was sporting some kind of a white crest. At her hip was a finely decorated silver sword. The second girl had a much more warrior like look due to the bronze colored armor she was wearing and a shield strapped on her back. Like the first girl, she had a long albeit scarlet hair which was tied into a ponytail and stunning emerald eyes. To Jaune it sounded like the second one was being recruited in first one's team with a lot of flattery. He was confused for a moment before he approached the girls because he could have sworn he had heard some storm clouds rumbling.

„Well hello there ladies, would any of you care to explain to this confused individual why is everyone here talking about teams?" he plastered his nicest smile and waited for an answer.

The white-haired girl, obviously not pleased with the interruption, responded a bit icily „And who are you?"

„The name's Jaune", he responded with a slight bow, „it's short, sweet and rolls of the tongue." Jaune continued, putting an emphasis on the last point with a gesture.

„Pleased to meet you, Jaune." The red-haired girl answered with a slight smile „I am Pyrrha."

„The pleasure is all mine, so can you ex-"he got interrupted before finishing the sentence.

„Jaune, do you have any idea who you are talking to?" asked the other girl, slightly irritated.

„Umm, I'm talking to Pyrrha?" there was confusion in his voice.

„The Pyrrha Nikos?"

„Is there a catch?" He was now definitely confused.

Pyrrha tried to explain but got interrupted by the other girl. „Pyrrha graduated top of her class at Sanctum."

_'Sanctum? Hmm, doesn't ring any bells'_ „Well, um, congratulations?" Jaune nervously rubbed the back of his head. „But I'm afraid I've never heard about it."

„She's won the Mistral regional tournaments four years in a row. A new record." The other girl was getting more irritated by the second.

_'Oh great, keep swinging in stuff I've never heard about. Gonna end up looking like a proper idiot.'_ „Well done again Pyrrha, I guess that is quite a feat." he paused „Don't know how big of a feat, but, um... yea... congratulations"

She responded with a small smile but the other girl looked like in she was in a state of utter shock.

_'Did I broke her?'_ he asked himself for a moment before there was an explosion of movements, her arms wildly flapping up and down.

„She's on the front of every Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow Flake box." She huffed in annoyance and crossed her arms.

„So that is why you look so familiar." Realisation dawning upon him „My brothers can't get enough of that stuff."

„Yeah, it was pretty cool." she answered sheepishly, her eyes glancing down „Sadly the cereal isn't that good for you."

„So after hearing all of this, do you really think you are in position to ask her be in your team?" the withe haired girl asserted herself back.

„That wasn't even..." The icy stare broke down his confidence and he sighed loudly „I guess not, I mean I've never even fought in a team and leading one is definitely something I've never thought about."

Pyrrha put her hand on his shoulder „I think you would be a great leader, Jaune."

_'And how a simple gesture can touch deeply' _„Thank you Pyrrha",he smiled back.

He was about to ask a question when a voice came through the intercom „Will all first year students please report to Beacon cliff for initiation. Again, all first year students please report to Beacon cliff for initiation.

„It was nice meeting you Jaune." Pyrrha departed with a wave.

„Yeah... you too," he waved back weakly.

_'Well, it's showtime'_ Jaune started following the large number of people exiting the room, all probably going to the initiation ceremony/test. On the way to the cliff he saw Ruby who was bouncing out of excitement, finally her weapon will be doing the talking. Jaune had to chuckle at the sentiment. He got introduced to Yang, Ruby's sister, a cheerful and relaxed blonde who had some mean looking gauntlets. He also learned that the girl he had talked to earlier was called Weiss and she was some kind of nobility or something. By the time he got to the cliff most of the students were already lined up. There was Pyrrha , standing with weapons in both hands and Weiss next to her, looking all regal. He even saw the duo he had observed when he had woken up. _'Of course the girl has a giant sledgehammer, suits her perfectly.'_

He reached the end of the line and like everyone else stood on a small metal platform. In front of him sprawled a huge forest with large, thick trees, almost all the way up to the horizon where finally some hills broke the large green sea.

They were all greeted by professor Ozpin, who had a mug of coffee and professor Goodwich who was typing on her tablet. Professor Ozpin addressed them „For years you have trained to become warriors. Today your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forrest."

_'Um yeah, about that training...'_ Jaune chuckled nervously

„Now I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of teams." Professor Gooditch spoke slowly while still tapping on her tablet „Well allow us to put an end on to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates. Today." She announced.

_'Now that is some interesting management. Are they going to pick teams now?'_ he wondered. Glancing towards others he could see that Ruby was looking like she was gonna shatter in pieces while Yang was expressionless.

Professor Ozpin started once again, gesturing with his mug. „Thease teammates will be with you for the rest of your time at Beacon. So it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you can work well."

There was a groan at his side. Ruby was looking absolutely terrified.

„That being said," Ozpin took a sip from his mug „First person you make eye contact after landing will be your partner for the next four years." Ozpin explained in a calm tone.

_'That is a hell of an attachment'_

Hering this last bit of information completely broke Ruby down. „What?!" she squeaked.

„See, I told you." He heard someone down the line.

„After you've partnered up," Ozpin scanned the group and then continued. „Make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path of you will die." This time he sounded more serious.

„You will be monitored and graded for duration of your initiation." He glanced at professor Goodwitch. „But our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several relics. Each pair must choose one and return to the top of the cliff. You will guard that item, as well as your standing and we will grade you appropriately." Ozpin explaining.

_'So, partner up... Get to the temple... Grab a relic...Return back... Sounds pretty simple yet I can't shake of this feeling that I'm forgetting something.'_

„Any questions?" Ozpin barely even paused to acknowledge anyone. „Good, now take your positions."

_'Positions? What positions?'_ Jaune was slightly puzzled.

His moments of confusion were broken by a mechanical sound. He turned his head towards it and the sight baffled him. His mind had gone completely blank and he had to rub his eyes, not quite believing what he had just seen. Seconds later another person was soaring through the air.

_'No way! No way! No way that is happening... But it is happening!__'_

Someone else got launched while Jaune was trying his hardest not to get a nervous breakdown.

_'Okay, okay... don't panic. Maybe there is another way.'_

Jaune raised his hand and asked a question. „Umm, is there, some other way... of insertion?"

„No" Ozpin deadpanned „You will be falling."

_'Well that is excellent.'_ More people got launched. '_Okay, don't think about the line shrinking rapidly.'_

„Oh, right... um, did you hand out... like... parachutes." _'Please say yes.'_ Jaune pleaded in his head.

„No, you will be using your own landing strategy." Ozpin looked like he wasn't interested, or worried even.

_'Well mate, you are not making me feel any better'_

Without noticing that it was his turn to get catapulted, Jaune continued asking his question. „So, um can you ex-"

The mechanism clicked, and moments later he was soaring through the air. Well, it was more wildly spinning around and screaming than soaring.

_'This is bad! This is soooo bad.'_

'_Come on body, stop turning around and doing barrel rolls, ugh.'_ Jaune was in full panic mode.

_'I'm gonna die. I'm definitely going to die. They are going to collect what's left of me with a teaspoon.'_

The trees were now getting dangerously close. _'Maybe if I close my eyes it won't hurt as much?'_

In doing so, he never noticed a sharp, deadly object approaching him, if he did, he might have moved and the ending would have been a much more different story. Suddenly something caught on his hoodie and pulled him strongly in one direction. He crashed through several branches, breaking them all and bruising himself before he got slammed into a tree.

_'Aaaaaa...my... everything.'_

His whole body was burning, his vision was blurry and there was a throb in his head. He could taste blood.

_'I don't think I've ever felt pain like this... but I'm alive!'_

Although he could feel only pain, he started laughing, reaching an almost hysterical edge.

_'I'm alive!'_ He was jubilant.

Moments later he stopped and tried to assess his position. It looked like he was hanging from a tree and something was holding him. He glanced up and saw a red and bronze spear sticking out of the tree.

_'Pyrrha...'_

„Thank you Pyrrha!" he yelled

„I'm sorry" came the reply a second later.

_'Sorry?! Bloody hell girl, you are sorry?! When I get down from here I'm gonna build her a freaking monument.'_

_'Sorry?' _He couldn't process it.

_' Bloody hell... she saved my life...' _He suddenly felt very fragile... and so foolish, trying to become a hero, enrolling into Beacon with people who worked on a whole different level. His inexperience and wish to become a hero like from the stories almost got him killed.

_'Damn...' _

His thoughts wouldn't give him peace for some time.

* * *

**Thanks for reading.**


	3. Crash course on auras

If somebody had said to Jaune earlier this morning that he is going to be launched off a cliff and later pinned to a tree he would have definitely questioned the one's sanity; however the day was full of unpleasant surprises. He had tried to pull out the spear but it wasn't budging a bit and assessing his injuries while hanging from a tree was impossible. However the stabbing pain coming from his chest while breathing was a clear sign of a broken rib and all this hanging was getting pretty uncomfortable so he prayed someone would find him soon. _'And the teachers are probably going to flunk me because of this.'_ He sighed.

_'Great work Jaune... simply great...'_

Few more minutes, all agonizingly slow, had passed before Jaune heard some noise coming from the nearby bushes.

_'Please don't be a monster.'_

And out emerged Weiss who upon seeing Jaune hanging from a tree froze like a statue and stared, trying to comprehend the sight before her.

„Hey you,Weiss, is it?" Jaune was flooded with relief, finally someone had showed up. „Can you help me get down from here? I'm kinda stuck, this spear won't move a bit and I've been hanging for good fifteen minutes. "

There was only silence.

„Weiss? A little help please?"

She pinched the bridge of her nose, sighed deeply and started going back the way she came from.

„Oh come on, come back!" Jaune pleaded. „Please don't leave me hanging here." He waved his arms around, trying to get her attention again.

All of it was ignored and Jaune was alone again.

„You came back!" someone squealed in the background but Jaune didn't register that there was another person nearby. Seeing Weiss walk away, not caring about his pleas for help hurt, and that coupled with his insecurities made Jaune feel worthless. Weiss looked like a pragmatical person and if she had seen anything of use in Jaune she would have probably helped but unfortunately it wasn't so. Occupied with his thoughts, Jaune didn't hear the second person approach, a certain redhead he had met earlier that day.

„Jaune?" Pyrrha gasped upon seeing him. „Jaune you look horrible, are you all right?"

Jaune looked at her and smiled. „Could be better but boy am I glad to see you." He tried to pull out the spear once more. „Think you can get me down?"

„Yes, definitely. I'm sorry you got stuck, it was t-" Pyrrha tried to explain.

„You went out of your way to save me and for that I'm more than grateful." He interrupted in a serious tone. „So please, no apologizing."

„As you wish Jaune, let's get you down from there."

„You got a plan?"

„I'm gonna count to three and then pull the spear towards me, you just brace yourself for the drop." She explained and extended her right hand towards the spear.

„One..."

„Wait, wait, wait!" Interrupted Jaune once more, gesturing furiously with his hands. „Are you going to count to three first and then do it or will it be one, two and action on three?"

„Um... I'm gonna count to three first and then pull the spear. You ready?"

„I guess so." He shrugged.

„Okay, one."

„Two."

„Three." Jaune braced himself.

There was a magnetic like sound and the spear dislodged itself from the tree and flew straight into Pyrrha's hand. Jaune hit the ground hard, sharp pain bolting through his left leg upon landing. _'Oh crap...'_ He winced and moments later collapsed on the floor, his injured leg not capable of supporting his weight.

Pyrrha rushed to his side, dropping her weapons.

„I think..." He coughed and sat up clutching his injured leg. „I broke something."

„Let me see." She started checking his leg ,focusing on the ankle. „This definately looks deformed."

„Oh great..." Jaune put hands over his face and collapsed back on the floor. „And now you are stuck with a cripple."

„Don't beat yourself about it, we will think of something." Pyrrha tried comforting him but her eyes betrayed her, she had no idea what to do now.

„Look just..." he started. „Just leave me, I have messed it up with that jump already, no need to drag you down with me."

„I can't simply leave you here. You can lean on me and we will make it to the temple somehow." Pyrrha protested.

„I'm telling you, just leave me here and one of the teachers will probably pick me up when all this is over." Jaune tried reassuring her with his words, offering a small smile.

„Don't give me any of that and let me see if I can do anything about your leg." She said with a twinge of anger.

Seeing her determination he gave up on trying to change her mind.

„Can you at least explain to me why didn't you use your aura to shield yourself?"

_'What?' _He started to rise slowly, confusion written all over his face. „My what now?"

„Your aura Jaune. You know what I'm talking about?"

„Oh yes, my aura." He exclaimed in fake realization, hitting a fist in an open palm. „ I know what an aura is."

She gave him a don't give me any crap look „This is serious Jaune, do you know what it is?"

„No..." He glanced down and sighed deeply, feeling deflated. _'Another probably ordinary thing I know nothing about.'_

She started with a small smile. „Aura is the manifestation of our soul." She touched her chest. „It bears our burdens and shields our hearts. Have you ever felt like you are being watched without knowing someone was there?"

„Um, yeah actually." Jaune had always felt something, something he could never quite explain, like someone was sitting on his shoulder and watching over him.

Pyrrha sat next to him and continued her explanation „With practice, our Aura can be our shield. Everyone has it, even animals."

„What about monsters?" Jaune enquired, wanting to know more.

„No. The monsters we fight lack a soul. They are creatures of Grimm, the manifestations of animality. They are the darkness and we are the light."

„Right, that is why we fight them."

Pyrrha shook her head. „It is not about why. It is about knowing. Understanding both dark and light helps us manifest our aura. Everyone has some of both. " She took a pause. „By bearing your soul outward like a force, you can deflect harm. All of our tools and equipment are conduits for aura. Project yourself and your soul while fighting."

He diverted his look, down to his stained gloved hands and was slowly opening and closing his palms. _'Project yourself and you can deflect harm... a fascinating concept. And the possible applications, who knows how could it be used. Could you maybe deflect harm not only from yourself but from others, or could you make yourself stronger, faster?' _Jaune was definitely interested in the notion.

While Jaune was thinking about all the possibilities of aura use, Pyrrha knelt up, leaned closer and suddenly pressed her hand to his face. „Now close your eyes and concentrate."

The sudden touch surprised him but he complied and closed his eyes.

There was silence for a few moments before Pyrrha started speaking again, mystique power lacing her words. „For it is in passing that we achieve immortality. Through this we become a paragon of virtue and glory to rise above all, infinite in distance and unbound by death. I release your soul, and by my shoulder protect thee."

Hearing those words stirred something in Jaune. It started with a heat forming inside his chest. At first it was barely noticable but with each word Pyrrha spoke it grew in power and by the end of her speech there was a raging inferno in his chest. And the heat spread to his limbs which started pulsating with power, each second it felt stronger and stronger. When Pyrrha ended Jaune felt like he was going to implode any second but suddenly as it had appeared, the feeling was gone. He opened his eyes. Pyrrha looked moments from fainting.

„Pyyrha, you okay?" Jaune asked, concern in his voice.

„I will... be alright" Her breathing was ragged, exhaustion evident in her voice.

„Are you sure? What was all that anyway?"

„I have used my aura to unlock yours but the energy that protects you now is your own. The process is usually exhausting for the one doing the unlocking." She explained. „But don't worry about me, just give me a few minutes to catch my breath." She sat down next to him, pulled her knees closer to her face and rested her hands on top of them.

„Well I certainly am not... going... anywhere?"

„Something wrong Jaune?" He was frowning.

„I don't... understand." He was feeling his left ankle. „It was definitely broken and now, I can't feel a thing. And the breathing, it doesn't hurt anymore!" _This is some wierd stuff... well, I ain't gonna complain'_

Pyrrha smiled brightly „That is amazing Jaune! The unlocking of your aura probably healed your injuries."

„Have you seen this already?" Jaune asked, he was curious for an explanation.

„No...but I've read about. Some of the hunters were said to have an ability to heal the grievest of injuries. It is a rare gift." She glanced at him and added in a sombre and slightly awed voice.

„It flet... it felt like I was going to burn to the ground." Jaune took of his right glove which was stained with blood. He had tried to find a wound. Nothing was there but smooth skin.

„It varies from person to person." She glanced at him again and then focused her look on the weapons lying in front of her. „I had a much different experience. My libs had flet like they were made out of lead. And the noise, the noise had been unbearable, I was afraid my eardrums were going to burst. And a few seconds later, the feeling was gone. And it had never happened again."

„That... must have been uncomfortable." Jaune felt a pang of sympathy.

After few moments of silence he inquired again. „And those words? Did they mean something?"

He had to say, he was enjoying this conversation. Pyrrha was like a calm teacher, not minding all the questions he was throwing at her and answering all of them with the best of her abilities.

„The true origin of the words is unknown but it is believed to have originated from the first hunters. Since they were the first people who had successfully unlocked and mastered the power of their auras, they had used it in a ritual like ceremony on anyone who wished to join their ranks or asked for protection. In that way... " She smiled brightly „ they had protected the people by teaching them to protect themselves. With years it had spread, became less formal, but the original power and purpose remained." She looked wishful for a moment „I don't know how they had unlocked their auras or created this words of power, the legends say none of that and much has been lost thought the history, but they gave the rest of humanity tools to stand against the darkness."

„Paragons of virtue..." He paused , letting everything sink in. „Well, thank you for explaining all this to me." Jaune stood up and brushed himself „But I think we should get going. That is, if you are ready?"

„Oh, of course" She raised herself and picked up her weapons. „We have spent enough time as it is." After observing her surrounding, she pointed a direction with her spear. „I believe the temple is that way."

„Lead the way then."

During the next several minutes they moved through the forest in quiet. Jaune however, still mulling over Pyrrha's last words decided to break the silence and ask some more questions. „Pyrrha, why do you wish to become a huntress?"

„Well," She started, moving a branch out of her way. „in Mistval, the region I come from, warriors and protectors have always been highly regarded in society and it has been so for centuries. And since my family had been warriors for generations coupled with my parents having a certain... standing, it was only expected of me to continue in the same steps."

„So you weren't given a choice?"

She turned back to him, a myriad of emotions flashing across her face „Oh I was given plenty of choice but let's just say that in the end, all the other options were much less... appealing. How about you Jaune?"

Jaune, not noticing Pyrrha's change of conversational focus from her to him, answered with gusto. „I've always wanted to be a hunter. Protecting those that could not protect themselves. As a kid, I loved reading books about heroes, imagining their adventures like I was part of them. And every night, just before sleep I would say to myself, I am going to be like that one day." His voice grew distant. „But for that, you need to have some skills or knowledge on what you are doing. You can't just rush around like a headless chicken or those around you could get hurt. Unfortunately," he became downcast „ I have none of those, so... yeah..."

„But that Is why you came here to Beacon, to become better." Pyrrha offered some support.

„Yes but... look at yourself, look at all the others, you are all leagues above me and-"

„Jaune." She put her hand on his shoulder „You have a very noble goal and because of that you shouldn't give up. You just have to put some faith in yourself and besides," she offered him a smile „ we've all started from scratch. Some of us were just given an earlier start."

Jaune closed his eyes and breathed in deeply. „If only it could be so easy." He gave her a sad smile. „But thank you Pyrrha, I'm lucky to have you as a partner..."

They both remained quiet for a long time. Half an hour later they had stumbled upon a cave.

„Do you think we should enter?" asked Pyrrha.

„They have never really specified what the temple looks like, for all we know it could be in a cave." Jaune responded, rubbing the back of his head.

„I don't know Jaune." Pyrrha looked doubtful. „I have a bad feeling about this."

„Oh come on Pyrrha, where is your sense of adventure?" Teased Jaune. „And besides, what's the worst that could happen?"

„Fine. Let's check it out."

They both entered the cave, none of them noticing warning signs painted near the entrance.

* * *

**Originally I had indented to write a big chapter about the initiation but in the end it felt more natural to just slice it up into several smaller chapters.**

**Hope you enjoyed and thank you for reading, peace out.**


	4. The cast assembles

The cave Jaune and Pyrrha were currently making their way through was a perfect example of a normal, ordinary cave. It was slightly chilly, the air inside was stale and damp, here and there a bat would fly over them and you couldn't see a thing in front of you. Thankfully Jaune had found a torch near the entrance which was now illuminating the way for them. And for Jaune it was somehow a sign that they were on a right track because why would someone leave a perfectly good torch in an unimportant cave. Pyrrha had tried offering some completely viable explanations but Jaune dismissed them all. The deeper they went, the more Pyrrha doubted they were on the right path but Jaune somehow always managed to persuade her into following him for a few more steps.

„Jaune, I don't think this is it. If something were here I'm sure we would have found it by now."

Jaune looked back at her. „Come on Pyrrha, could you at least humor me for few-" Since he wasn't watching his steps, he had tripped on a branch and crashed down. The torch flew out of his hand and landed in a puddle, extinguishing the flame and engulfing them in complete darkness.

„Oh damn..." He fumbled in the dark trying to find the torch. „Where the hell are you, you little bugger?"

„I seroisly doubt you will find it." Pyrrha responded, hoping to get out soon.

„Yeah... you are probably right." Jaune stood up and started brushing himself. „Let's turn back the-„

„Shhhh." She interrupted him, clamping his mouth with her hand.

There was a pregnant pause.

„Did you hear that?" She slowly removed her hand and looked at him, worry in her eyes.

He listened for a moment more. „Nope. Haven't heard anything."

She grabbed her weapons „There was definitely something moving."

„It was probably just a bat." Jaune shrugged her warnings.

„That was no bat."Pyrrha immediately dismissed his explanation. „Let's just get out of here and..." She stopped herself, noticing that Jaune wasn't standing near her anymore and was currently slowly walking towards a glowing object with one of his arms outstretched.

„Jaune" Pyrrha hissed. „What are you doing?"

„Look, I've found the relic!" He exclaimed in joy.

„I don't think that's a relic." But nevertheless she continued walking behind Jaune meanwhile holding her weapons a bit tighter and looking around, preparing for something to strike at them.

„Pyrrha, have you never read any stories?" He asked, not a care in the world. „The relics are always a bright and shiny thingy."

Jaune tried grabbing it with his right hand but the thing just slipped back a bit.

Pyrrha's eyes grew the size of saucers, finally recognizing what were they dealing with. „Jaune get back!" However it was too late, Jaune had already thrown himself at it.

Her sudden warning broke him out of his trance like state and as he was hanging from this strange object he had finally asked himself some important questions. _'Why is this thing so big? And why did it move?' _

Turning his look to Pyrrha, he saw her standing, slightly hunched, in a battle stance. Ready to pounce any second. Fear grabbed his hearth. When he turned back, there were several bloody eyes staring at him menacingly. The next moment lasted an eternity while was frantically trying to figure what was happening. Then his mind finally connected all the dots and he suddenly realised he was hanging from a Death Stalker's stinger.

A scream ripped the silence.

Immediately the Death Stalker tried to slice him in two with his left pincer. He managed to pull his body up in the last moment, barely avoiding the strike. But the Death Stalker wasn't finished with him yet. The monster lowered its stinger and was ready to repeat the feat, this time with the right one.

_'Oh shit... ' _It looked like there was no way he was going to avoid the next one. Dropping down would bring him just in front of Death Stalker's mouth which had pincers of their own and there was no time to climb up and dodge the incoming one. He steeled himself for the worst.

The strike never came, deflected with Pyrrha's shield. She immediately went into a counterattack, going for one of the eyes with her spear. The blow got blocked and the stalker, sensing a bigger threat diverted all its attention on Pyrrha, momentarily forgetting about someone hanging from it's stinger. And Pyrrha being a smart lass started running away as fast as her legs carried her. The chase through the caves lasted for a minute in which Jaune got rattled around and hit a wall or two in the process. Thankfully Pyrrha was quite nimble and the stalker was having problems catching her. Once they got out of the cave, Pyrrha stopped and tried to face her opponent, finally having enough space to manoeuvre around.

While strongly clutching her spear, Pyrrha was looking at various spots on the Death Stalker, trying to find a weak spot. She looked extremely troubled at the prospect of fighting a Death Stalker on her own. Seeing her just stand there, Jaune shouted „Pyrrha what the hell are you doing?! Run!"

Getting tired of the annoyance still dangling from its stinger, the Death Stalker suddenly tensed, extending it's appendage . _'Oh not again...'_

He could hear Pyrrha shout a warning „Whatever you do, don't let go!"

But he was no match against a monster that size and within moments, the second time this day, he was flying.

_'Why does this keep happening to me?'_ Jaune was asking himself while flying on a low trajectory over the forest. Although it had been a strong throw, he felt that he wasn't reaching the high speeds he did earlier this day when he had gotten catapulted off a cliff. However that didn't change the fact that he still didn't know how to properly land. A world of pain was knocking on his door. Somehow it arrived before he had even reached the treeline in form of a mid-air collision with something red and black. The impact drained a lot of speed, causing him to crash into a tree. He ended hanging upside down.

_'What the hell just happened? _Jaune was clutching his head, trying to suppress the incoming pain.

„What was...that" someone asked in a dazed voice.

He slowly opened his eyes and turned towards the voice. There sat Ruby, looking completely disoriented. Jaune cleared his voice „Hey Ruby" and gave her a weak wave.

She furrowed her eyebrows, trying to figure out what was going on.

Meanwhile Jaune was working on getting himself disentangled but his mind was elsewhere, worrying about Pyrrha. Getting them in all that mess with the Death Stalker was extremely foolish and now she was fighting it alone. He only hoped she was alright because otherwise... well, he didn't want to go there. Just as he had freed himself from the branches a loud roar erupted nearby. Out of the forest came a huge Ursa, desperately trying to swat something from it's back. A pink zap later and it collapsed on the ground. Someone rolled off the Ursa.

Jaune felt his jaw go slack at the sight. _'What... was she just... riding... that thing? And... and is she pouting right now?!' _She continued looking and poking at the now deceased Ursa form various sides like she was trying to wake it up and go for an another the Ursa popped out her partner who braced himself on the fallen creature's leg and was now in the process of catching his breath. _'Hey, those were the two from this morning.' _ Thought Jaune to himself.

„Nora...please... don't ever do that again" He heard him say. However, Nora was already gone and was momentarily rummaging through the nearby ruins.

„OOOooo" She looked entranced by the chess pieces standing on the pedestals. After picking up a golden rook piece she started to sing „I'm queen of the castle. I'm queen of the castle." She even had a small choreograph. Jaune could feel his eye twitch.

„Nora!" her partner roared.

She just smiled and answered in a sweetly voice. „Coming Ren!" Neatly palming the figurine before skipping her way towards Ren.

„Did that girl just ride in on an Ursa?" A girl next to Yang, who looked equally stumped, asked.

Jaune had finally managed to free himself and was just about to jump down when there was an another loud crash. Near the edge of the clearing he spotted Pyrrha, running as fast as her legs carried her and behind was a giant Death Stalker. It had just now dawned on Jaune how huge the thing was. His hearth jumped in his throat. _'Oh man, what have I done...'_

He tensely watched Pyrrha dodge a couple of close strikes but was broken out of his trance by yelling. „Grrr, I can't take it anymore! Could everyone just chill out for two seconds before something crazy happens again!" Yang was absolutely livid, flames dancing around her.

„Um Yang" Ruby started sheepishly, tugging at here sleeve. She pointed upwards.

Jaune looked through the treetop and there he saw a huge Nevermore. It sounded like someone was shouting from up there. _'Is that... Weiss?'_

„I said jump." Ruby tried explaining.

„She is going to fall." Countered another girl, one Jaune hadn't seen before.

„She will be fine." Ruby tried shrugging it off.

„She is falling." Deadpanned Ren.

Jaune, momentarily forgetting about everything else, prepared himself to catch Weiss. Few seconds later, without thinking even for a second, he jumped. Somehow he caught her, suprising even himself. „Just dropping in." He said, plastering a smile.

Weiss was looking absolutely baffled before pointing down to him. Jaune, still smiling, looked down. His eyes widened before definitely realising he had no idea what he was doing. He just sighed.

Jaune was the first one to crash, almost planting into the ground and just as he was thinking that it wasn't so bad, dropped in Weiss, landing on his back. Pain bolted through his body and he barely suppressed a scream.

„My hero." Said Weiss, sarcasm dripping from her voice.

„If I survive this day... I'm never leaving bed again." Jaune was muttering under his breath.

Moments later, Pyrrha crashed beside him. It seamed that the Death Stalker had somehow managed to launch her too. The rest of the crew was stoically watching the events, like they were judging a performance, Nora looked especially observant, before Yang perked up in a jovial tone „Great, the gang is all here! Now we can die together!"

_'Well, hello morbidity.'_ Came in a thought as he was rising up. He quickly approached Pyrrha who was still a bit wobbly on her feet. „ Pyrrha, I'm so sorry, I didn't-"

„Jaune." She looked at him and gave him an evil smile „We will talk about this later."

He gulped. _'If the monsters don't kill me today, she certainly will.'_

There was a battle cry and Ruby bolted towards the Death Stalker who shrugged her attack with no problem, as if it were dealing with a mere pest. Realizing her disadvantage, she turned and started running. Yang immediately sprinted to help. Jaune was about to follow when someone caught him by the arm.

„There is nothing you can do about it Jaune."

„But-" he tried to pull himself from Pyrrha's grip.

„You are just going to get yourself killed." She warned, gripping him harder.

Before he could protest some more, the Nevermore, forgotten by everyone for a moment, made a pass and shot a hail of deadly feathers, one of them pinning Ruby to the ground and the rest blocking Yang from helping. She was desperately trying to free herself.

„Just cut it off!" Jaune yelled.

Ruby, clearly panicking now, tried to free herself. However the Death Stalker was already on top of her. Moments before she would have gotten brutally impaled, she was saved by Weiss who appeared out nowhere and froze the large stinger. Everyone breathed out a sigh of relief. „That got quite tense."

„That was like in the movies!" Nora perked up. „The brave hero charges in alone but soon finds himself in a live or die scenario with help nowhere in sight. " She was vividly reenacting the scenes. „And then, just moments before death. Bam! A mysterious stranger arrives and saves the day. And then they killed all the bad guys and lived happily ever after."

„Nora, I don't think we have reached those parts yet." Ren tried to explain.

„Oh you silly, you will see soon." She replied with a bright smile.

„I don't know, that thing is circling back." Jaune pointed at the sky. „And it doesn't look happy."

„There is no sense in dilly dallying." Said Weiss as she returned to the group. „Our objective is right in front of us." Nodding her head at the ruined building.

„She is right. Our missions is to grab the relics and return back to the cliff. There is no point in fighting these things." Ruby answered in agreement.

„Yes, you are both right. Run and live to fight another day, I'm totally for that but... does any of you volunteer..." He pointed at the still stuck Death Stalker., „... to inform those things that there is no point in duking it out now? Hey mister Death Stalker." He started in a mock voice. „Yea about that fight...hmm... I'm afraid I'm short on time, so how about tomorrow, maybe after luncheon and then we will have a proper gentlemen's duel."

„Anybody?" Jaune looked at the gang.

He turned around and walked to the pedestal which held a golden rook figure. „I'm just suggesting that we find better positions before they catch us here in the open." He placed the figure in one of his belt pouches.

Seconds later, a cracking sound followed by a screech signaled that the Death Stalker was free.

„He is right." Said Ren, glancing at the monster „Time we left."

„Right, let's go" Ruby nodded, a determined look in her eyes.

They all started to running into the nearby ruins, seeking any form of cover.

Pyrrha who was running close to Jaune asked in a low voice. „What was with the speech?"

„Well, someone had to point out the obvious and get us moving." He looked at her and shrugged. „And I don't want something like the cave incident happening again."

She just flashed him a smile and continued running, monsters close on their heels.

* * *

**Can't say I'm too pleased with this chapter. Oh well... I can always change/fix it later. Anyways, one more chapter and day two will finally be over and this story can move into new waters. Regarding that chapter, it most likely isn't going to**** be uploaded as quickly as the rest of them were because I have a lot of work at the Uni, engineering really sucks at times. **

**Nevertheless, thank you for reading. Peace out.**


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